Taken more than half a century ago, a photograph by Jiang Qing, the last wife of former Communist leader Mao Zedong, sold at a Beijing auction on Saturday for 391,000 yuan (more than $64,180), almost 20 times its 20,000 yuan estimate.

The photograph, titled “Lushan Fairy Cave,” was captured in 1961 and the black-and-white print depicts the mountain in the distance with branches of the tree appearing in the foreground. A temple is visible at the top of the mountain, which is surrounded by a clouds and contrasting light.

Lushan held a special significance for Mao. Located in Jiangxi province along the Yangtze Rive, the town was one of his favorite summer vacation spots. After ousting the nationalist Kuomintang party from power in 1949, Mao took over a villa that had been occupied by his rival Chiang Kai-shek.

Lushan was the site of a major meeting for the Communist party leaders in 1959, during which Mao wrote the poem “Ascent of Lushan.” Two years later, party leaders congregated there again for a meeting, when Jiang — sometimes known as Madame Mao — took her photograph.

According to the firm that sold the lot, Huachen Auctions, Jiang learned photography from Shi Shaohua, a vice president of the Xinhua News Agency. Her photograph of Lushan impressed Mao so much that he penned a poem for her, nowadays often taught and read by Chinese students, which praises the dramatic landscape.

The sale of the photo comes at a time when Mao is surging in popularity and increasingly referred to in political chatter. Chinese President Xi Jinping this year visited the Lushan villa that inspired the poems and photo, saying that the building should become a center for educating youth about patriotism and revolution.

Huachen said both the buyer and seller were private collectors, and declined to give further information.

Comments (1 of 1)

"Chinese President Xi Jinping this year visited the Lushan villa that inspired the poems and photo, saying that the building should become a center for educating youth about patriotism and revolution."

be careful what you wish for mr. xi. 'revolution' has different meanings.